In theory, when every device in the chain is using 8 bits for all components, there should be no difference between '''RGB Video Level''' and the two '''YCbCr''' settings. Blu-ray and DVD are both recorded using [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/YCbCr YCbCr] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chroma_subsampling#4:2:0 4:2:0]. This is chroma upsampled by the hardware decoder to YCbCr [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chroma_subsampling#4:2:2 4:2:2] which then must be upsampled to YCbCr [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chroma_subsampling#4:2:4 4:4:4] and converted to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RGB_color_space RGB] for display. These last two conversions can occur in the player, in the display, or in some intermediate box.

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In practice I would try all the settings, calibrating for each one separately, to see if any looks better than the others. In the past there have been examples of displays that did not handle certain color spaces settings very well. I would hope this has improved with time.

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<div class="note">

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'''Note'''

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Some (most?) displays do their internal calculations in YCbCr, so if you send them RGB they have to convert the signal to YCbCr for computation, then back to RGB for display.

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Converting between RGB and YCbCr is simple math and is lossless (if the software uses enough bits of precision) but the principle of "keep it simple" suggests sending a YCbCr signal to the display is less error-prone.

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</div>

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'''RGB PC Level''' should not be used unless you know your display expects it. Some computer monitors may require this, but A/V gear should be using '''RGB Video Level'''.

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Unlike HDMI, a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Visual_Interface DVI] video connection is always RGB regardless of the player setting.

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If your display supports [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Color Deep Color] and HDMI 1.3 you can experiment with the player's Deep Color options; I have no experience with that.

:If the next device has a control for this it too should be set to Automatic (i.e., it should be expecting HDTV color space if it is getting YCbCr from the player at 720p or above and SDTV color space if it is getting YCbCr from the player at resolutions below that).If RGB is being used, this choice is not relevant. The SDTV vs. HDTV stuff is only relevant to YCbCr output.If the SDTV vs. HDTV color space stuff is wrong (i.e., the devices at either end of the cable are not in agreement) then the error will show up primarily in the greens -- which will be 15% hot or dull depending on which way you have the error.</div>

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:* If your next device supports '''Deep Color''' then turn that on as well in the player. This will yield YCbCr 4:4:4 or RGB Deep Color data format.

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:* If the next device supports Deep Color and it appears to be working bug free, then you are done. Continue using YCbCr 4:4:4 or RGB Deep Color output from the player.

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:* If you are using '''YCbCr 4:4:4''' and the next device does '''not''' support Deep Color, then, after you are familiar with how YCbCr 4:4:4 is working for you, try an experiment with '''YCbCr 4:2:2''' output from the player to see if your next device supports that.

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::If it accepts the signal, calibrate the video levels again for YCbCr 4:2:2 (don't just assume your YCbCr 4:4:4 level settings are also right for 4:2:2) and see which data format seems to be working better for you -- seems to be giving you a more pleasing image. YCbCr 4:2:2 may be able to give you smoother gray scale and color ramps for example.

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::<div class="note">'''Note''' YCbCr 4:2:2 is an alternate data format (not supported by all receivers or displays) which allows you to transmit the fineness of gray scale and color step sizes characteristic of "Deep Color" connections while only consuming the signal bandwidth of "normal" connections. It makes this all fit by the trick of sending only half the horizontal color resolution: that is, sending 12 bit values for each of the 3 components but only sending one or the other of the color components for each pixel -- like this -- YCb, YCr, YCb, YCr, etc -- so that it still only consumes a total of 24 bits per pixel.YCbCr 4:2:2 is part of the older HDMI specs. So you may discover that you have hardware which is '''not''' HDMI V1.3 (or is HDMI V1.3 without the optional Deep Color feature) but which '''does''' accept YCbCr 4:2:2 at 12 bits per component. And if, so, it is worth giving that format a try -- what I call "Deep Color for the rest of us"!</div>

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:* If, on the other hand, you have a DVI device (or an HDMI device that has a bug in its handling of YCbCr input), you may discover that the starting choice of '''RGB Video Level''' is making it hard for you to properly set black and white levels. In that case, see if '''RGB PC Level''' output from the OPPO works better for you.

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::<div class="note">'''Note''' This will typically be the case if the next device is engineered primarily for computer use, as with some projectors.You may also discover that the DVI input on the next device has a setting that configures it to expect Studio RGB (Black=16) or Extended RGB (Black=0) in which case switching it to the Studio RGB choice should make it match up well with RGB Video Level from the OPPO. Some home theater devices with DVI inputs will actually state that their DVI input is '''not''' intended for computer use. That's fine too. It just means the device is set to receive Studio RGB (RGB Video Level) and offers no setting to change that.</div>Switching between RGB Video Level and RGB PC Level will make the image look darker or lighter (which is why the RGB black levels choice in some devices is even labeled "Darker" vs. "Lighter), but that's just because you have not yet reset the levels properly in the next device to account for this change in the player's output.If the next device has enough calibration range, RGB Video Level and RGB PC Level will look '''identically''' light or dark once matched with the corresponding, proper level settings in the next device.If the next device doesn't have enough calibration range, then pick whichever of RGB Video Level or RGB PC Level works better. If both work, you really ought to use RGB Video Level unless there is some bug in the next device that forces you to use RGB PC Level.

What is the best output resolution for my display?

See the manual (Installation / Setting Up the Player - Easy Setup Wizard / Select the Best Output Resolution).

What is the best color space?

See the manual (Setup Menu Options / HDMI Options / Color Space) which recommends Auto as the best setting.

What if I want to set the color space manually?

In theory, when every device in the chain is using 8 bits for all components, there should be no difference between RGB Video Level and the two YCbCr settings. Blu-ray and DVD are both recorded using YCbCr4:2:0. This is chroma upsampled by the hardware decoder to YCbCr 4:2:2 which then must be upsampled to YCbCr 4:4:4 and converted to RGB for display. These last two conversions can occur in the player, in the display, or in some intermediate box.
In practice I would try all the settings, calibrating for each one separately, to see if any looks better than the others. In the past there have been examples of displays that did not handle certain color spaces settings very well. I would hope this has improved with time.

Note

Some (most?) displays do their internal calculations in YCbCr, so if you send them RGB they have to convert the signal to YCbCr for computation, then back to RGB for display.

Converting between RGB and YCbCr is simple math and is lossless (if the software uses enough bits of precision) but the principle of "keep it simple" suggests sending a YCbCr signal to the display is less error-prone.

RGB PC Level should not be used unless you know your display expects it. Some computer monitors may require this, but A/V gear should be using RGB Video Level.

Unlike HDMI, a DVI video connection is always RGB regardless of the player setting.

If your display supports Deep Color and HDMI 1.3 you can experiment with the player's Deep Color options; I have no experience with that.

Specific advice from an expert

My recommendation is that folks start with:

YCbCr 4:4:4 if the next device is an HDMI device

RGB Video Level if the next device is a DVI deviceThe Auto setting should already do this for you.

If the next device has a control for this it too should be set to Automatic (i.e., it should be expecting HDTV color space if it is getting YCbCr from the player at 720p or above and SDTV color space if it is getting YCbCr from the player at resolutions below that).If RGB is being used, this choice is not relevant. The SDTV vs. HDTV stuff is only relevant to YCbCr output.If the SDTV vs. HDTV color space stuff is wrong (i.e., the devices at either end of the cable are not in agreement) then the error will show up primarily in the greens -- which will be 15% hot or dull depending on which way you have the error.

If your next device supports Deep Color then turn that on as well in the player. This will yield YCbCr 4:4:4 or RGB Deep Color data format.

If the next device supports Deep Color and it appears to be working bug free, then you are done. Continue using YCbCr 4:4:4 or RGB Deep Color output from the player.

If you are using YCbCr 4:4:4 and the next device does not support Deep Color, then, after you are familiar with how YCbCr 4:4:4 is working for you, try an experiment with YCbCr 4:2:2 output from the player to see if your next device supports that.

If it accepts the signal, calibrate the video levels again for YCbCr 4:2:2 (don't just assume your YCbCr 4:4:4 level settings are also right for 4:2:2) and see which data format seems to be working better for you -- seems to be giving you a more pleasing image. YCbCr 4:2:2 may be able to give you smoother gray scale and color ramps for example.

Note YCbCr 4:2:2 is an alternate data format (not supported by all receivers or displays) which allows you to transmit the fineness of gray scale and color step sizes characteristic of "Deep Color" connections while only consuming the signal bandwidth of "normal" connections. It makes this all fit by the trick of sending only half the horizontal color resolution: that is, sending 12 bit values for each of the 3 components but only sending one or the other of the color components for each pixel -- like this -- YCb, YCr, YCb, YCr, etc -- so that it still only consumes a total of 24 bits per pixel.YCbCr 4:2:2 is part of the older HDMI specs. So you may discover that you have hardware which is not HDMI V1.3 (or is HDMI V1.3 without the optional Deep Color feature) but which does accept YCbCr 4:2:2 at 12 bits per component. And if, so, it is worth giving that format a try -- what I call "Deep Color for the rest of us"!

If, on the other hand, you have a DVI device (or an HDMI device that has a bug in its handling of YCbCr input), you may discover that the starting choice of RGB Video Level is making it hard for you to properly set black and white levels. In that case, see if RGB PC Level output from the OPPO works better for you.

Note This will typically be the case if the next device is engineered primarily for computer use, as with some projectors.You may also discover that the DVI input on the next device has a setting that configures it to expect Studio RGB (Black=16) or Extended RGB (Black=0) in which case switching it to the Studio RGB choice should make it match up well with RGB Video Level from the OPPO. Some home theater devices with DVI inputs will actually state that their DVI input is not intended for computer use. That's fine too. It just means the device is set to receive Studio RGB (RGB Video Level) and offers no setting to change that.

Switching between RGB Video Level and RGB PC Level will make the image look darker or lighter (which is why the RGB black levels choice in some devices is even labeled "Darker" vs. "Lighter), but that's just because you have not yet reset the levels properly in the next device to account for this change in the player's output.If the next device has enough calibration range, RGB Video Level and RGB PC Level will look identically light or dark once matched with the corresponding, proper level settings in the next device.If the next device doesn't have enough calibration range, then pick whichever of RGB Video Level or RGB PC Level works better. If both work, you really ought to use RGB Video Level unless there is some bug in the next device that forces you to use RGB PC Level.

What is the best Deinterlacing Mode?

The manual (Setup Menu Options / HDMI Options / De-interlacing Mode) has a nice summary of the options and recommends Auto, which is what I use.

Note

Deinterlacing is required for DVD playback. Some extras on Blu-ray may be interlaced, and some main features like concert videos, but most Blu-ray titles are stored in a progressive format that does not need to be deinterlaced.

Which means this setting is not relevant for most Blu-ray main features.

Tip

I have DVDs where changing the default deinterlacing mode can improve playback. An example is the 1965 TV series Honey West. Using Auto deinterlacing, the image often shimmers, shows broken diagonal lines and spectacular moir� on striped shirts.

For some reason the way this disc is authored makes it difficult for the player to detect and lock on to the correct cadence. Forcing deinterlacing to Film Bias Mode gives a big improvement in image quality.

Since this setting, like most others, can be made while the title is playing, you can quickly see whether or not the changes are an improvement.

What is the best CUE-Correction setting?

The manual (Setup Menu Options / HDMI Options / CUE-Correction) has a nice summary of the options and recommends Auto, which is what I use.

Note

See this article for more on Chroma Up-sampling Error (CUE) and Interlaced Chroma Problem (ICP): Chroma Upsampling Error.

CUE is a fault of the video decoder chip, and since all of the OPPO players are free of the fault, they won't have CUE anyway.

ICP may still be present in interlaced video and CUE-correction will detect and correct it.

In any case, both CUE and ICP are issues of interlaced video. This applies to DVD, some Blu-ray extras and a few Blu-ray features, but most Blu-ray main features are stored in a progressive format and will not have either problem.

What are the recommended Edge and Detail Enhancement and Noise Reduction settings?

The manual (Setup Menu Options / Video Setup / Picture Adjustment) recommends 0 for each of these settings.
Sharpness is an odd adjustment. Unlike grayscale and color settings, which are the same regardless of distance, with sharpness what you see depends on your seating distance. As you move nearer and farther from the display, sharpness-related effects (like moir�) will come and go. Distance, visual acuity and display resolution and technology are all contributing factors.
This is apart from the issue of personal preference. There is an audience for "the sharper the better" but too much of a good thing and the image no longer looks like film or reality.
So, more than even other picture adjustments, it is difficult to make recommendations.
I have no strong advice yet. Still experimenting and waiting to hear other informed opinion.

Noise Reduction: I've never used it.

Edge and Detail Enhancement have similar, but not identical, effects. You can move them separately or together, in the same or opposite directions. See the manual (Setup Menu Options / Video Setup / Picture Adjustment) for general advice.

Demo Mode is a way to inspect the image with and without these adjustments. See [#what-is-demo-mode What is Demo Mode?].

DVD seems too sharp for me at Edge and Detail Enhancement (0,0). Calibration test patterns show a bit of ringing (= white halos). I am experimenting with settings of -2 or -3 on either or both settings.

Blu-ray is harder to judge and (0,0) may be the best values, but small negative values do not seem to harm the image for me.